Construction and infrastructure professionals are confident that the UK can deliver the Prime Minister's 68%* carbon reduction target by 2030 but want further clarity from the government ahead of COP26, according to new industry research.
Around 65% of respondents toTarmac’sClean construction: unlocking net-zerosurvey, which has been delivered in partnership with Infrastructure Intelligence ,stated they were optimistic that they could meet the government’s 2030 target. However, over 60% called for more detail from Westminster before the international COP26 summit in November in the form of a national net zero roadmap.
The unique piece of research has canvassed the views of professionals and senior decision-makers working across the sector to deliver a snapshot of views and attitudes about the key challenges being faced on the journey ahead to net zero.
Among other key findings, nearly half (45%) of respondents want more guidance and training from the government to help the sector decarbonise. This is a sign that project teams are increasingly thinking more carefully about their operations and environmental choices.
Nevertheless, there is a divergence in how people measure carbon impacts – whether at the corporate or project level. Although there are good levels of understanding (70%) about what constitutes whole life measurement, the data reveals that just over a third of companies are using this method. However, alarmingly, around 25% still do not evaluate carbon on the projects are working on.
Dr Martyn Kenny, Tarmac’s sustainability director, said: “The results from this survey have provided an excellent opportunity to understand the market’s current sentiment on net zero. It’s positive to see there’s an air of quiet confidence in the infrastructure and construction community about the UK’s ability to deliver net-zero, reflecting the corporate progress that has been made over the last year.
“While it’s great to see there is a willingness to learn more; it’s also clear that industry evaluation of carbon on projects remains a mixed picture. Although awareness of whole life measurement is around 70%, only just over a third of companies are evaluating carbon in this way. It’s clear more needs to be done to adopt a consistent approach to measuring carbon – tackling CO2 emissions requires an industry-wide method and early engagement to shape and embed whole-life measurement into projects from the outset.”
The results from the Clean construction: unlocking net-zero survey have been written up into a report by Tarmac and Infrastructure Intelligence, which is available to read here: https://tarmac.com/clean-construction-report/
*At the time this research was undertaken, achieving a 68% carbon reduction by 2030 was acknowledged as a government commitment. It is now recognised that this figure has been amended to a target of 78% by 2035.
